Viral Clip Shows Russell Westbrook Saving Domantas Sabonis From Fouling Out

Russell Westbrook has been deemed selfish at various points in his career. A viral clip from this past weekend, however, poses a strong rebuttal to that notion.

In the clip from the Sacramento Kings-Milwaukee Bucks game, Domantas Sabonis is at the foul line with 2:35 left in the fourth quarter. Right after he misses the free throw, his teammate Westbrook is seen pointing to Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is bringing the ball down the court.

The message was clear: “I got Giannis.” Westbrook, a 6-foot-4 point guard, wanted to guard the 6-foot-11 Greek Freak from beyond the half-court line.

Seeing that he had a severe mismatch, Antetokounmpo went straight for the rim, causing Westbrook to give up a foul. As the Bucks superstar prepared to take his free throws, the cameras caught Westbrook looking Sabonis in the eye and uttering the words, “I didn’t want you fouling out.”

The scene played out like a moment in a dramatic film, except that the tension was real for the Kings at that moment. With under three minutes remaining, Sacramento was holding onto a four-point lead for dear life. They’d lost three consecutive games heading into that Bucks matchup, and they’d won just one game in five outings up to that point.

Ensuring that Sabonis would stay in the game, of course, would not guarantee a Sacramento win, given that Antetokounmpo has been playing at a high level to start the season. But Westbrook’s decision to give up a foul ended up paying dividends, as Sabonis played a key role in the dying seconds of the game.

With 26.5 seconds left and the Kings leading 133–132, Antetokounmpo had the ball in his hands, threatening to seize control of the game in front of the rabid home crowd at Fiserv Forum. This time, it was Sabonis who picked him up on defense.

Antetokounmpo, one of the deadliest open-court players in the game today, began driving to the rim with unbridled aggression. Sabonis, the young star that Westbrook paid a price to save just minutes earlier, stayed in front of the two-time MVP and forced a turnover.

The Bucks ended up sealing the 135–133 win to improve their record to 2–4. Westbrook finished with 12 points, 10 assists, and five fouls, while Sabonis had 24 points, 13 rebounds, six assists, and one steal.

This performance was a far cry from Westbrook’s triple-double greatness of the past. But, in a crucial moment where his teammate was in danger of exiting the game, the future Hall of Famer committed a truly selfless act.